Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) acknowledged the effort to draft her in 2016, saying that some of her liberal supporters want her to run because Americans are “ready to fight back.”
Warren — who has insisted that she’s not running for president — made the remarks during an appearance in Springfield, Mass.
{mosads}According to a MassLive.com report, she was asked for her “reaction to the folks who your message is resonating with that want you to run for president, that support you as a senator.”
Warren responded that “Americans understand that the game is rigged, and they’ve had enough of it. They’re ready to fight back. They want a Washington that works for them.
“People are getting more engaged, politically, and they’re seeing through a lot of the rhetoric that politicians have been throwing out there for a long time. They want to see some real change, and I think that’s what we need to work on.”
“Sen. Warren was responding to why people support her and what she’s fighting for, not commenting on the draft efforts,” a Warren aide, who did not want to be named, told The Hill.
But that’s not how liberal groups urging her to run for president interpreted her remarks.
Progressive groups like Ready For Warren, Democracy For America (DFA) and MoveOn.org are trying to draft Warren to run for president in 2016. Hillary Clinton is the likely front-runner if she runs, but progressive groups have concerns about her ties to Wall Street.
Neil Sroka, communications director for the DFA, said in a statement that Warren’s remarks on Thursday are “an incredibly clear sign” that she is listening to progressives’ calls for her to enter the race.
“There’s still plenty we plan on doing to encourage Senator Warren to heed the call of her supporters, change her mind about running, and enter the 2016 race, but, after what we heard today, there’s no doubt she’s listening,” Sroka said in a statement.
Ready For Warren campaign manager Erica Sagrans said in a statement that progressives are “ready to help [Warren] fight back.”
“Our message to Senator Warren is this: when you’re ready to run, we’ll be ready to help you fight back,” Sagrans said in a public statement.
Clinton maintains a dominant lead in 2016 polling against Warren and other prospective Democratic challengers.
—This story was updated at 11:14 p.m.